Who was Mary Anning?
British fossil hunter Mary Anning is widely regarded as the first female paleontologist. Born in Lyme Regis, England in 1799, she spent her life collecting and studying Jurassic fossils on the beaches of her home. She is known for making some exceptional discoveries, although at the time, she wasn’t given the credit for her work that she deserved.
Why should kids learn about Mary Anning?
Mary Anning’s is a story of resilience, determination, courage, and discovery, making her an engaging historical figure to introduce your students to. She and her brother made their first major discovery when they were just children themselves!
You could link her life and legacy to Earth Science topics like fossils, or study her as part of Women’s History Month in March (as an aside, I have a full post on Women in Science here).
Here are 8 interesting facts about amazing fossil hunter Mary Anning that you might not know and that your students will love…
A dice with death!
1. When she was a baby, Mary nearly died! During a lightning storm, a lady holding Mary sheltered under a tree. The tree was hit, and the woman was killed, but Mary survived!
She sells seashells on the seashore
2. Mary’s family was not wealthy. Her father was a carpenter and the family also collected shells and ‘curiosities’ on the beach to sell. We now know these curiosities were fossils of sea creatures like ammonites, but back then people weren’t exactly sure what they were!
An amazing discovery!
3. After the death of their father in 1810, the Anning children continued to look for fossils. Mary’s brother Joseph discovered a huge fossil skull in the rock. Over many weeks, a 12-year-old Mary carefully extracted the animal. It was an ichthyosaur – a prehistoric reptile that looked like a combination of a fish and a lizard. This one was over 5 meters long and one of the first to ever be found.
The first plesiosaur
4. Mary searched the beaches and cliffs in all weathers. She went on to discover a fossil of the first complete plesiosaur (a marine reptile with a long neck and flippers),
Another discovery – a winged reptile!
5. In 1828, Mary discovered the first flying reptile to be found in Britain (Dimorphodon). She assisted scientists with her knowledge and discoveries, but because she was a woman, her contributions and work were rarely acknowledged.
Fossil poop
6. Some of Mary’s observations and fossil finds were smaller but no less important. She put forward the idea that the rounded rocks she found containing fish scales were fossil poop (now called coprolites).
Mary Anning’s legacy
7. Unfortunately, Mary died when she was just 47 years old. She is buried in the churchyard overlooking the sea at Lyme Regis. Some of her finds are displayed at the Natural History Museum in London and she is now acknowledged for the huge impact she had on our understanding of prehistoric life.
8. In 2022, following a campaign by a local schoolgirl, a statue of Mary Anning and her dog Tray was erected in Lyme Regis. The campaign was called ‘Mary Anning Rocks’ – you can find out more about it here: https://www.maryanningrocks.co.uk/about
Introducing your class to Mary Anning
Do you want to introduce your children to Mary Anning and her fossil discoveries?
For ages 3-6, my rhyming picture book, A Girl Called Mary is available as a Kindle ebook, or in paperback. Join Mary as she searches the beaches and cliffs around her seaside home and discovers clues about extinct animals from long ago!*
*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases
➡️Explore more children’s books about Mary Anning here
Full Mary Anning lesson pack for KS2 and elementary science
For 6-11 year olds, this Mary Anning lesson pack will give students an insight into Mary’s life and finds. It comes with a slideshow (PowerPoint and Google Slides), graphic organizer templates, and a folding timeline of Mary’s life. Both US and UK versions of the files are included.
You may even find that Mary inspires your young ones to become palaeontologists themselves!
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